KYREN WILSON will be attempting to do what NO OTHER snooker player has managed since 1977.
The 33-year-old reigning world champion heads to the Steel City later this month and has his eyes set on defending his title.
He is in excellent form too, having picked up almost £1million in prize money already this season.
The world No 2 has won four ranking titles since his Crucible triumph in 2024, and doesn’t just have the £500,000 prize money motivating him this year.
Wilson also has the potential to make history and be the first player to break the infamous Crucible curse.
Even legends like Ronnie O’Sullivan and Stephen Hendry could not escape its grip, and its got nothing to do with black cats, broken mirrors or walking under ladders.
What is the Crucible Curse in snooker?
The Crucible curse is the quip given to the fact that no first-time world champion has ever retained their crown the following year.
Since the tournament moved to the Crucible in 1977 it has cursed 19 players in a row with every debut champion crumbling under the pressure of snooker‘s grandest stage.
Some have come close though – Joe Johnson and Ken Doherty both made it to the final the year after their maiden victories – but most don’t get anywhere near that far.
As recently as 2023, Luca Brecel was doomed by the curse, losing in the first round of the 2024 tournament after winning the title the year before.
Brecel is not on his own though – seven champions have gone on to lose their first match the following year.
Steve Davis, Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan and Mark Selby have all managed to win consecutive titles at the Crucible, but they had won the championship previously.
Wilson returns to South Yorkshire as the reigning champion and is determined to lift the curse and posted a hilarious video to social media in an effort to exorcise the demons.
In the video, Wilson jokingly completed some of the superstitions people believe to bring us bad luck, including smashing a mirror and holding his World Championship trophy next to a black cat.
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season, when the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins
How to watch the 2025 World Championship?
- Coverage from the Crucible gets underway on Saturday, April 19 and will be shown on BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Four and on iPlayer.
- The World Championship draw is also set to take place on Thursday, April 17.
- The final will take place on Monday, May 5.
- Fans will not miss a moment of the action, with every match available to watch on the BBC Sport website and app.
- Extended coverage will also be shown on BBC Two every night with fans able to tune in to Snooker Extra to see highlights from the days action.
- Alternatively, SunSport will live blog every single match over the whole tournament.